Ethnographic study on the community health nursing practices in rural Japan

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The purpose of this ethnographic study was to describe the community health nursing practices in rural Japan from public health nurses' perspectives. Twenty-four public health nurses (PHNs) who were working at rural community participated in unstructured, tape-recorded interviews.The findings were as follows:1. Rural communities have maintained the traditional values and norms, while rural life has rapidly changed.2. It was found the closer relationship between PHNs and community members.3. Six characteristic rural community health nursing practices were found; 'considering the whole of community', 'conducting the practices from the actual work to health care policy planning', 'creating the health care systems in a community', 'networking among the persons, organizations and institutions ', 'surveying the actual condition of community' and 'carrying out immediately '.4. 'Networking among the persons, organizations and institutions' which was the most important community health nursing practice in rural areas had five kinds of modes; 'connecting with the residents', 'maintaining the relationship with other professionals or staff members of town (village) office ', 'connecting with clients and their family members', 'networking strategies when PHNs initiate the health care programs' and 'creating the residents' organizations or neighbors' networks in a community'.5. PHNs were practicing community health nursing activities with the cognitions such as 'philosophy of community health nursing practices', 'a sense of satisfaction to attain the aim', 'disadvantages of PHNs working at rural community ', 'a sense of justice for residents and their community', 'awareness of PHN's responsibilities for residents and theft community' and 'desire to learn and improve the health care of one's community'.From these results, it seems important to clarify the knowledge about rural community health nursing practices and create the rural nursing modal.